Running notebook: Family tragedies lead to racing for a cause

Updated 9:00 am, Thursday, November 1, 2012

Cathy Pool of Tomball will be running as part of Team Ritter in the 2012 New York City Marathon.

Cathy Pool of Tomball will be running as part of Team Ritter in the 2012 New York City Marathon.

Photo: Courtesy Of Cathy Pool

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Cathy Pool, of Tomball, who will be running as part of Team Ritter in the 2012 New York City Marathon.

Cathy Pool, of Tomball, who will be running as part of Team Ritter in the 2012 New York City Marathon.

Photo: Courtesy Of Cathy Pool

Running notebook: Family tragedies lead to racing for a cause

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Cathy Pool, a 40-year-old Tomball school nurse, knows how tough training for and running a marathon can be. She has suffered through two this year already.

But her biggest challenge during preparations for Sunday's New York City Marathon hasn't been the long runs in Houston's heat and humidity. It's been sharing her story with others as she raises funds for a cause near to her.

The program, part of the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health, supports research to identify genetic risks for aortic dissections. The foundation was established by the widow of actor John Ritter, who died in 2003 from an undiagnosed aortic dissection.

A thoracic aortic aneurysm is a widening, bulge or ballooning of the aorta, the major artery leading from the heart to the rest of the body. If an aneurysm is not treated, it will enlarge without any symptoms and can cause a tear, or aortic dissection. Almost half of individuals with an aortic dissection die suddenly; nearly 15,000 deaths in the U.S. are attributed to it annually, reports UT Health.

Deaths in the family

Pool's father, Eufemiano Quitania, died in 1997, at age 62, after an undiagnosed abdominal aneurysm ruptured during an Oregon camping trip. Guilt ridden - "I'm a critical care nurse, how did I miss this?," Pool wrote in the team application - she encouraged her older brother and sister to get checked for any potential problems, which they did.

Pool said her sister, Marianne Kilpatrick, was particularly conscientious about her health. But despite her precautions, Kilpatrick collapsed and died while giving a speech, 11 years after her father had been stricken. She had suffered an aortic dissection at age 39, leaving a husband and 2-year-old daughter.

Pool found herself devastated once again. Though she and her sister had not been close while they were young, they had become so after Kilpatrick moved to Texas.

"That first year, it was just darkness. It felt horrible," Pool said. "We knew everything about each other, then I lost that piece in my family."

At the suggestion of a friend, Pool turned to running as a way to manage her grief. She finished a 5K benefiting ovarian cancer research and found herself wondering if she could help others in a similar way.

She had her doubts. Pool said her older sister was the go-getter, the organizer, the natural-born leader in her family.

"I'm kind of a private person, so to do this and go out and share my story, my family history, with other people was hard for me," she said. "I prefer to go into a race where people don't know if I'm there or not."

Living legacy

But Pool hasn't looked back since her husband told her she would be living her sister's legacy by stepping out of her comfort zone to raise money - she hopes to hit $8,500 - for Team Ritter. While it was her intention to give back, Pool says she's benefited from the gifts of memories shared by the friends and family who have donated in her sister's honor.

Pool says she sometimes feels like she's running because her sister can't. And she never felt more so than during her first marathon in January. Though she realized it would displease "the running gods," Pool convinced her runner friend to wear a bib that was not her own so she could accompany Pool on the course. A few miles from the end, the temperature warmed, and her friend removed the long-sleeve shirt that had kept the name and number hidden throughout the race. It was only then that Pool noticed the name on her friend's bandit bib: Marianne.

"The first time since my sister's death, I felt like I was finally living," Pool said. "Running has changed my life."